Education

Failing School Finance in the West: A Continental Divide

By Rebecca Wittenstein — March 11, 2008 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The allocation of dollars for education is one of the most important responsibilities of state and local governments. In Quality Counts 2008, the EPE Research Center examines and grades states on education finance. The results illuminate an interesting regional pattern. This stat of the week takes a closer look at this pattern.

The EPE Research Center grades states on two aspects of school finance: spending and equity. While spending quantifies how much school districts and states are spending per pupil, equity measures how uniformly resources are allocated among disparate student populations. Each of the states with the lowest overall finance grades (Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Washington) received a D-minus or a failing mark in the category of spending. While the west is not the only region to fare poorly on spending measures, the states in the southeast, which also fared poorly in the spending subcategory, boosted their finance grades with high rankings in equity. The western states scored around the national average on equity, so their scores in this category were not high enough to bring up their overall school finance grades.

State Grades on School Finance

BRIC ARCHIVE

Because school finance policies in each state are developed independently, it is notable that the lowest ranking states in the category are all concentrated to the west of the Rocky Mountains. With the exception of Oregon, no state in the western region received a grade higher than D-plus.

For more state-by-state information about school finance policies, please see the EPE Research Center’s Education Countsdatabase and our School Finance topics page for the latest news on school finance.

Events

Budget & Finance Webinar Leverage New Funding Sources with Data-Informed Practices
Address the whole child using data-informed practices, gain valuable insights, and learn strategies that can benefit your district.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Classroom Technology Webinar
ChatGPT & Education: 8 Ways AI Improves Student Outcomes
Revolutionize student success! Don't miss our expert-led webinar demonstrating practical ways AI tools will elevate learning experiences.
Content provided by Inzata
Classroom Technology K-12 Essentials Forum Tech Is Everywhere. But Is It Making Schools Better?
Join us for a lively discussion about the ways that technology is being used to improve schools and how it is falling short.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: May 31, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: May 17, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: May 3, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: April 26, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read